


Fallen

by Callester



Series: Tales of Fate [4]
Category: Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-14 10:35:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29417247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Callester/pseuds/Callester
Summary: His rare glimpse into her moments of vulnerability behind the walls of her isolated castle.
Relationships: Gilgamesh | Archer/Artoria Pendragon | Saber
Series: Tales of Fate [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1689961
Comments: 6
Kudos: 22





	Fallen

_**Fallen** _

_His rare glimpse into her moments of vulnerability behind the walls of her isolated castle._

* * *

A strong gust of wind blew past her loose locks, shading away the full view of a bloodshed she knew too well from her eyes. Emotionless as always, she maintained her stance despite the irritating count of dead bodies in the expense of her wide sight underneath the cloudy sky that begged for a storm. Her heart was akin of a familiar sturdy boulder, heavy with each and every countable regret of the past as it continued carving its way onto the surface of her mind. Amidst it all stood Excalibur, pierced deep into the centre of the stone, symbolising the unfaltering pain of her decisions that ultimately costed the lives of those she cared until the very end of her life. Though like the matter her heart was made of, it refused to bleed nor weep for the lost souls that were sacrificed for her own sake. All irony as well as reality she faced had no longer strike her deeply, for she had come to an acceptance of such fate and felt no fight left in her soul.

Arturia casted downwards and met the merciless weapon still held steadily on her fisted right hand, still dripping with the blood of those who met their fateful lives at the edge of the sword. Likewise, she stood as still as the steel, watching over the littering bodies and countless broken weapons aftermath of a war. Men and women alike would scream upon a tragedy that befall them but differently, Arturia shut her eyes instead and summoned the remnants of her energy to muster an anguish shout. It would have released her from the pain despite temporarily, she thought and eventually proceeded to her short-lived desperate attempt of escaping from everything. Thus, that ended the cycle of her unlikely dream.

She opened her eyes into the blinding darkness around her, ears caught on the ricocheting echo of her scream that passed through the walls of her deserted castle. Pushing herself up into a sitting position and blinking a few times to adjust her eyes to the faint light of the moon, she abandoned the comfort of her bed to glance out the window. The sky was still coloured in deep blue, a colour she personally loved. It simply brought forth an indication that there were still a good few hours spared before daybreak, with the world itself still deep asleep as lulled by the occasional sounds of the nocturnal animals that inhabited the forest next to her castle. Arturia would have obeyed the sudden spike of need to get lost in the forest during the unlikely hours to simply wander through the wilderness carelessly if it was not for the nagging heaviness of her head. It could have been her sleepy state that had induced such conclusion, though she made her way out of her chambers and into the wider living area.

Her feet were cold against the marbled tiles as she continued her steps determinedly towards the sole sitting furniture within the space. Groggily registering the darkness of the room, Arturia pushed open the door to the balcony, allowing the night breeze and moonlight to clear the stillness in the air. She silently hoped that it would steer her mind away from the recurring nightmares as she finally gave in to another attempt of a decent sleep on the spacious throne-like chair this time, desperately trying to rid of her aching head.

Her lids felt heavy by the growing seconds and soon after, Arturia was dosed into a restless sleep as the flashbacks of her past continued its haunt in the dark. Unlike earlier, she felt herself too weak to break free from those thoughts and had instead, allowed them to bury her underneath the guilt that had already struck her heart for as long as she could remember.

***

She was awakened by the quick shift of air around her while her eyelids still refused to open. Unbothered by such difficulty, Arturia lifted the invisible yet familiar weight of her sword forward and finally forced her eyes to register the person who dared to trespass her castle. Standing straight with her sword pointing right at the _stranger_ ’s neck, her heavy gaze followed through the sharp edge of the blade and finally met a pair of crimson orbs that stared piercingly at her through the darkness of the room. She furrowed her brows in deep confusion upon registering his identity and kept a quick glance to their surroundings as if trying to make sense of everything. The rush of actions had unfortunately caused her head to throb and forced her to stagger on her feet, though her stubbornness had refused to accept such simple _defeat_.

“You should lie down, Arturia.”

Gilgamesh pushed the sharp edge aside while speaking in a calming voice, as if mindful of the impact of volume on her headache. Catching the tremble of her stance caused him to move a few steps towards her but was stopped abruptly by Arturia’s icy glare despite her orbs appearing unfocused between him and the sight behind him.

“What are you doing here, in the heart of my castle, amidst this unlikely hour?” She rephrased her confusion in a more precise manner, hinting on her wonder of his appearance at the exact moment when she felt herself at her weakest.

Out of her second nature, she began to doubt the security of her castle, wondering if it was as easily broken in as done by Gilgamesh without herself noticing any signs of it. Or had it been her distracted self that had lowered her guard to the point of exposing her vulnerabilities for enemies to make a move. But of course, there was a small part of her that felt certain of Gilgamesh’s intention to be nowhere near harming her at the moment. Though given the circumstances of a realistic yet repeating nightmare and the lack of usual alertness in her nerves, Arturia felt herself trapped within her own weaknesses and carelessness.

He would have replied her with a playful sarcastic comment in any given day of their exchange but this time was _not_ one of those moments. “I was with Merlin. He suspected you of having a severe cold and went out to search for some herbs when we met earlier.” Casting his eyes back to meet hers, Gilgamesh maintained its intensity as if assessing Arturia’s thoughts. “Apparently, he was right.”

“I’m fine.” She snapped in defence as she shook her hand away to dismiss her invisible sword.

Under normal circumstances, Arturia would have kept the weapon close whenever she was dealing with potential enemies. Though given her prior conclusion on the intention behind the other king’s presence, she found _less_ need of such defence. At least, for _now_. But that had not stopped her from wondering if her screams were heard by him without her own consent.

Arturia almost shook her head at that but refrained from the action for the sake of her worsening headache. All she was capable of doing at the moment was none other than exposing piece by piece of the weaknesses she fought throughout her life to conceal from one’s eyes. And yet, there seemed to be a number of those personal taboos that were broken just tonight in the presence of another person. That fact truly irked her to no end and Gilgamesh was just a thin wall away from her bubbling irritation.

“Leave, Gilgamesh. I’m not on my right mind to deal with you at the moment.” She inhaled in the hopes of easing the intense throb of her head.

In the midst of that, she knew that her words might have sounded unusually rude from her side but allowing Gilgamesh to roam around and forced to deal with her possible mood swings was not fair either. Hence, being alone while healing herself from the claimed cold seemed to be the better alternative. She may have a temporary unstable mood, but _not_ her rationality.

“Please.” She finally settled on a compromise to her prior biting statement.

Thought to have dismissed him, Arturia settled back on the furniture with her eyes closed in another attempt of finding relief from the invisible yet splitting pain that had spread throughout her head. Hence the incoming palm against her forehead was unforeseen and shocking enough to force out another defensive reaction from her by grabbing Gilgamesh’s wrist and glared back at his crimson orbs.

“You’re _boiling_ , Arturia.” He emphasised the word that was once being directed to him not too long ago.

Though the teasing glint in his eyes was quickly replaced by a more concerned look once Arturia pushed his hand away by the hold on his wrist. “I _will_ be fine.” Staring back at his unmoving figure after the passing numbing seconds, Arturia got up from her seat and headed towards the balcony with a blanket draped on her shoulders. “Please leave, Gilgamesh.” She uttered in a low voice as she walked passed him, still sparing a thought of pushing him as far as she did to everyone while struggling hard in taming with her inner demons.

Hearing the faltering footsteps from behind her as she settled crossed legs on the balcony. A part of her was washed over by relief over the thought of someone leaving her to her own space, a wish that would always be answered whenever she insisted on it. Though the thoughts that lingered on her mind left her with a bitter aftertaste towards the same action where she was cursed to be alone regardless of the time and those who wandered near her. Was she the one whom had brought up such fate upon herself all along? Had her determination led into stubbornness of repelling the others away? Or had it became the main cause to the downfall of those who trusted her from way back then?

Her brows furrowed, simultaneously shutting her eyes tight at the jabs of those unkind thoughts upon her already weakened heart. If those were as simple as a source of an ear-splitting noise, Arturia would have covered her ears with her hands. Though words that echoed in the space of one’s head was unfortunately, permanently unreachable. As distracted as she had been for the night, Arturia had missed out the sound of reproaching footsteps until a soft nudge on her right shoulder shook her into opening her eyes in shock.

Looking back at her were a pair of eyes that differ from a rather similar crimson counterpart, but still held the same air of confidence in them. Enkidu grunted lowly at Arturia out of an unlikely greeting, into which caused her to look back at Gilgamesh, who stood right behind the lion, in pure confusion. Hadn’t he left just a moment ago and where had Enkidu came from?

“Convince him to leave and I’ll do the same.” Gilgamesh prodded Arturia with the challenge as he nodded towards his feline companion.

“You want me to _talk_ to a lion now?” Arturia raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

Gilgamesh scoffed a little. “Not just _any_ lion. Convince _Enkidu_.”

Arturia managed a shake of her head before changing her view back to the said lion. Despite unsmiling, she reached a hand to pat the lion’s unruly mane a few times only to have him sliding his head under her raised arm and lay next to her in another deep purr. A little taken aback by his action, Arturia heaved a sigh and laid her arm atop of Enkidu and _almost_ smiled.

“Thought so.” Gilgamesh broke the silence with a smirk and went on with sitting on the other side of Enkidu.

Casting at the double doors that lead to the hallway, Arturia took notice of its recently closed appearance before returning her gaze to the starry night. Of course that action alone had not gone unnoticed by the other king despite not looking directly at her way. And since the air was still heavy with unspoken deep thoughts, Gilgamesh figured that it would do as a substitution.

“What was it?” He asked, still keeping his voice low in respect of the deep night and along with Enkidu’s soft snores.

“Half expecting your entire entourage to walk into the room out of nowhere like the two of you did.” She answered on beat, though her voice sounded mellow due to the previous screams.

Gilgamesh caught onto her stoic humour with a smile, grateful over the slightest appearance of Arturia’s retorting self despite trapped in a battle she would have hardly revealed. Though he was stubborn enough into searching for a way to pass the suffocating barrier that may reduce her will and thus undo her all. There was no need for any further explanation over such severity for a look on her face was enough to draw his intent of helping her. He was, after all, not a stranger to a pain that still refused to retreat from inside him.

He gazed back to the door with a sigh before turning back to the sky as Arturia did just recently. “There would be, if they had not all been sacrificed in the wake of the endless battles.” The usual jest in his answers was absent, replaced by truthfulness that was remarkably hard to come by from Gilgamesh.

Triggered by the insensitivity of her words that had led to such reply, Arturia turned her head swiftly towards Gilgamesh in horror of her own mistake. “I apologise. That was very careless of my words.” She even shook her head in disappointment of herself.

“I know you long enough to be able to decipher what lays behind your words, Arturia. No offense taken, hence there was no need to place a blame on yourself for it.” Though Gilgamesh was readily dismissing her apology, there was something from her actions that had revealed the slightest clue to her disrupted thoughts at the moment. “How about you, Arturia? Any event that relates to mine?”

It sounded brutally honest to the ears of anyone who was listening to their conversation and understood the context of their verbal exchange. But Gilgamesh justified it as a purposeful yet necessary probe to Arturia’s tightly sealed dilemma and he would take the necessary steps to further break down the defensive walls she built around the said matter if the current approach failed. Keeping his eyes trained on Arturia’s actions, it surprised him to a concerning degree upon her slightly sagged shoulders when considering a reply to his heavy query. And it was at that point of the time that Gilgamesh almost backtracked his direct attempt over the sensitive matter. Though Arturia managed to steel herself into accepting the challenge.

“I had come to a point where I witnessed the death of those close to me, each and every one of them, while I claim my victory over the disastrous aftermath of a war. Not much of a difference on your part, I assume?” Her voice was maintained in a steady tone though her features showed otherwise as her lips tugged into a bittersweet smile.

Arturia then lifted her eyes to meet Gilgamesh’s observing ones and they allowed the stare to last for a few more moments before breaking it off. Unable to come up with descent words as his mind busied itself into assessing her statements, Gilgamesh managed a civil nod. Determined to walk down the path of unravelling her thoughts, he continued his side of the story.

“All too well. Enkidu’s last few breaths were spent in my arms before he was gone for good.” The statement came out too quickly and _perfect_ when it was spoken.

Gilgamesh thought that perhaps, all of the pain that came with it were now familiar and well-adapted in him now. Measuring the validity of his thought, he casted a deep gaze on both his open palms as the memories of that fateful night made it way to his head, as loud as the thunder from then and as clear as the sky tonight. It was foolish to think that he could even forget or dull the details of the said tragedy with time. One cannot erase scars despite bearing its faded appearance throughout life, so why had he thought of forgetting something as deep as that at the first place?

 _‘Had Arturia been trying to erase hers as well?’_ Gilgamesh asked himself curiously.

“How do you take it?” She asked tentatively.

Gilgamesh leant against the wall that separated the living room and the balcony, mustering a low sigh while casting a faraway gaze towards the dark sky. “Not well, obviously.” Deeming silence from Arturia’s side, he took on the cue of continuing his story. “I ran away from reality.” Gilgamesh heaved another sigh once he received a pointed stare from Arturia. “With that being said, I abandoned my own city in refuge of my personal pain.”

It was a cowardly act to be reminisced, in all honesty. For his sadness had forged into fear that encouraged a search for a myth that could lead to an eternal journey. And yet, he was naïve enough to listen and _believed_ it wholly without considering the slightest bit of the consequences that may come with his _escape_.

He waited for her remark on his past selfishness. Though when none came, Gilgamesh turned his head to face Arturia. What was asked from her next had baffled his thoughts and eventually caused the degree of seriousness of his concern towards her to reach a new peak.

“Did it work?” Arturia shifted her attention from the stars and caught on Gilgamesh’s eyes upon her question. “Had it reduce the pain of your loss, in the end?”

Maintaining a façade over his staggered calmness over her queries, he decided to reveal the truth behind the path he had so willingly taken back then. “If finding a potion that could defy death over my newfound fear of witnessing a friend’s demise and then had it stolen under your nose was an accomplishment, then it was indeed a successful venture.”

It was simply a proof of desperation, if Gilgamesh was to lay it in plain words. And as much as he hated to place himself with such a pathetic picture that was once a part of his traits, history could not be erased from one’s memory ever so simply. Though not to ignore the fact that mistakes provide the most effective life lessons in the case of those who possessed a stubborn heart and doubtful mind against almost everything, such as himself. With that factor certainly determined, it unsettled Gilgamesh more over the contrast between Arturia’s question and her usual determined way of thinking. It was what separated him from her as much as it intrigued him day by day.

“Why ask, Arturia? What thoughts are you trying to escape from so badly?” His approach had indeed caused a slight jerking reaction from Arturia though her features remained free from any notable expression.

She kept a distanced look on the horizon from the balcony, as if trying to make sense of her uncertain feelings by herself now that Gilgamesh had pointed out the obvious. The word that had fallen into her range of thoughts were none other than those that may have easily been dismissed as _unrealistic_ by Gilgamesh, but that had not caused her to walk away from it.

“The past.” Arturia’s hand stilled throughout the small movements by Enkidu, despite the lion still well asleep. “The history carved by my own existence that brought more suffering to my people than it was capable of balancing out its glory. Perhaps, my situation couldn’t really go well with yours, Gilgamesh.”

Gilgamesh then sat up straight and turned his sitting position to directly face Arturia instead of the night sky. “And why was that?” If Arturia was annoyed by Gilgamesh’s sudden peak in questions directed to her, she showed no sign of it.

“You speak of losing a friend and expect me to understand it.” Arturia stated and cast her eyes over Gilgamesh. “I can’t do that if I could _not_ relate to it.”

For the first time since his arrival, Gilgamesh allowed a display of confusion to take over his face upon her statement. Carefully thinking over his incoming reply, he hesitated a little before speaking it out eventually. “Your words led on an assumption that you never had a friend, Arturia.” He paused for the slightest moment. “Did you?”

Heaving a sigh and mustered a small smile, Arturia picked up the same remark from Gilgamesh and asked out rhetorically. “Do I?” Refusing to meet the other’s intense stare, she chose to lean against the wall once more and watch the stars.

“All my life, I was surrounded by those who would sacrifice their life for my sake with a strong belief that I could lead those left behind into a better future.” Similarly, Arturia paused for a while. “I was there as a _leader_ , Gilgamesh. Not as an equal, or even a _friend_ , to my knights. I was no one but a king from the first time I drew my breath on Earth up to my fateful death, and even _now_.”

Arturia inhaled deeply after the outburst as well as an attempt of shutting away the tears that felt so foreign behind her eyes, remembering the truth about herself throughout that. She might as well as possess a heart of stone, or slowly turning into one if it has yet to come to that point.

Gilgamesh frowned openly at her. “ _Why_ had you come to such conclusion, Arturia?” Instead of pinpointing the origin of her pessimistic thoughts, he cared more on her current perspective that caused the eventual breaking point of her strong exterior.

“Would you betray someone who trusts you, Gilgamesh?” As if sensing the doubt in Gilgamesh’s mind for a reply, Arturia continued not too long after the pause. “I have a strong assumption that true _friends_ wouldn’t do such a thing. Am I right?”

“But your knights were known to be loyal and yet you don’t seem to assume them as someone _worthy_ of your friend?”

Arturia shook her head at the statement, messing her hair with the action. “I wouldn’t think of myself as a friend _worthy_ of them, either way. Especially if I had led them to such failure.” She finally opened her eyes into gazing upon the sky once more, her brows furrowed ever so slightly as if trapped in a discreet dilemma. “Betraying _me_ seemed to be the wiser choice if one was given the chance to choose from. And so, it had proven to be true.”

Gilgamesh scoffed audibly next to her, triggering Enkidu a little over the harsh sound of disapproval. “This may sound impossible to _anyone_ else, but correct me if I had mistaken your words. Did you just _defend_ the acts of betrayal that happened to be the _main_ cause of your downfall?” Without waiting for her undoubtedly difficult verbal reply, he continued. “There’s no justification for betrayals in this case, Arturia. You can’t compare someone who would rather sacrifice their lives for your sake to those who sold away your trust while gaining their glory for it. They do _not_ belong to the same case.”

“It hardly mattered now anyway for it was all in the past.” She noted, trying to dismiss the continuation of her unexpected revelation.

“And yet, you can’t seem to allow your mind to be free from it.” He pointed without missing a beat.

“I _can’t_ do that if I was constantly reminded of it in my dreams and now, coming from someone sitting right _next_ to me, could I?” Gritting her teeth a little while letting out an exasperated breath, Arturia spoke out.

Gilgamesh smirked over her irritation for it counted as a _normal_ reaction from her. “Are you finally coming into an admittance that it bothers you just as much as it appears to me?” With this coming from Gilgamesh, he just decided to foil Arturia’s escaping attempt from the heavy matter that clearly occupied her mind.

She would have shot the best menacing look over his remarks but there was barely enough energy for her to continue facing his verbal provocation instead. “Would you drop it if I admit so?”

“Maybe.”

She realised that it was indeed a call for retreating one’s ego at this time around. Though coming from none other than Gilgamesh, it was only _natural_ for one to lay down theirs to make way for his to prevail. Exhausted as she felt deep in her bones with her past memories’ hauntings, coming to _surrendering_ her determined nature towards _him_ was never a choice to begin with. Hence, Arturia kept her head level to the possible banter.

“Then _yes_ , you have your answer, Gilgamesh.” She answered neutrally.

“Then you have my apology, as well, Arturia.” His answer further surprised her, like any other moment when he had broken off from his usual known arrogant persona. Before Arturia could query more on his strange remark, Gilgamesh took onto himself to continue speaking. “For approaching something in the past that still triggers an aftermath on yourself without much of a consideration on my part. But you should be clear that it was not something for you to own the blame upon, in the end.”

Arturia blinked her eyes once out of a concealed self-rage. “Who shall I blame then, Gilgamesh, if not for my _own_ cause?”

Raising to the same heat in the air, Gilgamesh turned right at her and leaned a little closer as if to study her face. “What had you possibly done wrong back then, Arturia? You sacrificed your self-priority and life in return of a country that repaid your deed with a foolish betrayal.” He kept his voice level, lowering the storm that typically came with anger. “And that act alone had planted a seed of doubt in yourself towards the genuineness of every intent directed to you, leading yourself _away_ from the others and continue to be the perfect _emotionless_ leader you thought would suit your kingdom better.”

In a simpler sense, that act of betrayal acted as a poison to Arturia. It may not be strong enough to kill the consumer at its first exposure, though continuously corrode their insides with its remnants. As innocently hidden as it first appeared, Arturia’s perception on this matter was as destructive as the poison itself. And if it was not extracted anytime soon, a part of her would fall under the siege of these thoughts without her own realisation.

This became the sole reason for Gilgamesh’s attempt in prodding Arturia’s past emotional wounds for he needed to catch a true glimpse of the notion that had caused her uncharacteristic breakdown. Strength may be the best wall of defence built in regards of facing unknown strangers. Though there was the unrealised catch of it being a disguise of locking away the pain that had called for such defensive means in facing potential enemies. Gilgamesh was easily one of those whom had taken such path while ensuring solitude as the best companion in keeping a strong rule on his kingdom. But it all happened _after_ the chain of events that opened his eyes to the wisdom of life.

Arturia, on the other hand, was different than he was. Instead of building a wall that would protect her from the enemies within and beyond the boundaries she set, it had slowly morphed into an inescapable prison that dulled her true self from inside. Leaving herself in such a state any longer would truly cause her to forever lose herself in the wake of time. Of course that will _never_ happen under his watch.

“Emotions are the only connections left for the heart to reach out to one’s mind. Choosing to listen to it is not a sign of weakness, Arturia.” He paused for a moment to allow his words to reach her.

The silence may indicate ignorance to those drawn to their conversation but in Arturia’s case, it was far from pushing everything away from her mind. She was _listening_. Shifting a little from his relaxed position, he casted a sideway glance at her before continuing.

“If you expect me to conclude my point of view with an exaggerating note along the lines of asking you to endure and simply _forget_ all that as a part of the human life cycle,” he explained and imagined the similar careless _encouragement_ she received ever since, before continuing, “then you would be disappointed.” Gilgamesh smiled a little at the slight shift of Arturia’s hand that had stopped its petting motion against Enkidu’s fur. She was _still_ listening.

It could be a rush of the moment for he consciously controlled his instinct of reaching for her hand and squeeze it out of comfort as he convey his truest message. “It is fine to grief for a lost acknowledged by yourself, Arturia. You don’t have to maintain a strong façade while allowing your hidden emotions to crumble you from within. It is alright to just freely _feel_ what your heart has been yearning to let out. It is alright to cry it out as well, for I did the same when my best friend died.” The last sentence was strangely spoken with less difficulty than he had thought in prior.

Gilgamesh closed his eyes briefly before refocusing his sight upon the brightest star on the night sky, sending a silent prayer to his deceased companion that was once his equal. As if tugged suddenly by another change in the air, he turned towards Arturia’s side and witnessed the droplets of tears from her cheeks, eyes and face safely concealed by a curtain of blonde locks that shift with the night air. In all honesty, he had expected her to break into severe sobs like any other person who had carried an emotional burden as heavy as hers. Though a greater part of him knew that she was always stronger than her assumptions.

He discreetly drew a relieved sigh upon her openness, for it was the first step of acceptance that she had delayed for far too long since it was needed. A crack from her perfected defence and yet a much needed break that would eventually heal her wounded heart. Gilgamesh allowed silence to lay its rule over the air once again as minutes turned into hours passed since Arturia’s breakdown. She fell asleep soon enough, lulled by nightmares in disguise of unreachable sweet dreams with her loosened fingers atop of Enkidu slowly tightening into a fist.

Without sparing another moment of doubt, Gilgamesh carefully slipped his hand into hers and secured their fingers together in a substitution of the incoming fisted action from Arturia. It must have been something she had done awfully often for there were deep nail indents upon her palm that threatened to bleed if the action prolonged. That observation alone was what had caused Gilgamesh to continuously stare upon the movements of her hand while busying himself with his own thoughts throughout the night.

It was almost an undeniable fact where Gilgamesh cared for nothing as deep as those he considered to be personally close to him. And like the thoughts he came across before, Arturia had always seemed to came into an exception to all of his known rule of logic. Of course it was related to his obvious feelings towards her. Though he would need to summon an immense sense of patience in his nature when dealing with it, he could somehow grasp upon the worth behind them.

Gilgamesh heaved a low sigh as he turned his head back into noting the stars as his hands tighten slightly upon Arturia’s, the movement caused Enkidu to stir a little in its sleep. Instinctively, Gilgamesh reached his other hand to pet its mane and leant close to its ear to whisper phrases in his native language that further soothed the lion into dozing off once more, cooperating with its master’s request of remaining at rest as a calming companion to Arturia.

***

The moment Arturia open her eyes, they had first landed on the colourful daybreak sky where she took notice of the early hours of a new day. It was only the next second had she registered her _occupied_ hand that was still atop of the sleeping lion. Though before she could speak, or rather _demand_ , an explanation from the owner of the _other_ hand that refused to budge at her attempt of loosening the hold, Gilgamesh only passed her a smirk in greeting.

“You’re awake. How was your sleep?” He asked, uncharacteristically cheerful.

“Adequate.” She replied curtly, eyes narrowed towards their joined hands in obvious suspicion. “What is the reason for _this_?”

Feigning ignorance, Gilgamesh took a few seconds to stare back at the return of her lively emerald eyes before landing them on their hands. “Oh _this_? Would you believe it if I tell you that you had reached for mine last night?”

Arturia furrowed her brows. “ _No_.” There was a slight hesitation on her features right after but she maintained an emotionless demand either way. “Whatever the reason is, _now_ is time to let go.” She tried to shake her hand away but he only held it tighter with a more defined smirk. “ _Gilgamesh_.”

“Only if you promise to stop digging your nails into your own skin each time you’re frustrated, Arturia.” Perplexed by his remark, Arturia kept silent when Gilgamesh continued in a more sober expression. “You will only further hurt yourself if I am to let you fist your hand unconsciously _again_ last night.”

As if on cue, Enkidu made a move of standing up and stretch between the two, breaking their hands more effectively than Arturia’s attempts. Wondering on the truth of his words, Arturia gazed at her hand and note the crescent marks on her palm. She would not have noticed that if it was not for Gilgamesh’s _keen_ observation.

“How do you feel, Arturia?” She flicked her eyes from her palm to meet two pairs of eyes that cast direct stares at her; Gilgamesh and Enkidu. “Letting out of your emotions for once was relieving, wasn’t it?”

Arturia inhaled deeply, as if to assess her own feelings and the hurt that seemed to constantly linger in her. She felt hollow from all the crying done on her side though as miraculous as it may sound, she could feel _herself_ returning. For once, he was _not_ wrong.

“You’re right. I feel better.” She spoke the first sentence in an unnaturally fast pace that Gilgamesh almost blinked at it.

Thinking over the words that he thought to have misheard, he could barely hold back a triumphant grin. “What was that, Arturia?” He teased.

“I will only say it once and I had done just that, Gilgamesh.”

“Worry not. I heard you, _crystal clear_.” He laughed freely before messing Enkidu’s mane with a maddening wide grin.

Possessing a close relevance of annoyance from Gilgamesh, Enkidu went over to Arturia and nudged its head against her shoulder before engulfed in a side hug by her as she discreetly smile at the feline. Catching it through his peripheral view, Gilgamesh renewed his grin. It would have been impossible for him to be _grateful_ of the wellbeing of a person other than himself in the past. But at this current moment, all those seemed to truly fade into a distant memory.

Still staring at the playful interactions between the two, Arturia’s sudden statement caused him to freeze for the briefest moment. “Thank you, Gilgamesh.” She spared him a quick glance before focusing back to the lion, refusing to provide more explanation behind the spoken remark and relied solely on the interpretation of the other on it.

“You are most welcome, Arturia.” Gilgamesh settled with a genuine smile as he continued to watch the interactions between the two.

It had not mattered how deep she had fallen into the calls of her inner demons, for he believed that she would rise higher than ever right after. And given the right chances in the future, he would certainly be her dependable companion regardless of the things to come.

**Author's Note:**

> A little melancholic twist for this one shot but I find it to suit the two in a way. Feel free to share your thoughts and thank you for your time! :D
> 
> P.S.: Happy Lunar New Year (it's the third day, from where I live) to those who celebrate!


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